


Big Sky

by martizzle



Series: To Be Alone [2]
Category: Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Agoraphobia, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Angst, Anxiety, Fix-It of Sorts, Hurt/Comfort, Lots of Crying, Lots of Hand-Waving, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, don't worry; he'll get over it (slowly but surely), mondo's got some internalized toxic masculinity, they get outta hope's peak just don't WORRY about it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-18 13:35:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28993032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/martizzle/pseuds/martizzle
Summary: Good news: Class 78 is rescued from Hope's PeakBad news: almost everything else(Mondo and Taka learn how to live again. It's not easy.)
Relationships: Ishimaru Kiyotaka/Oowada Mondo
Series: To Be Alone [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126862
Comments: 16
Kudos: 121





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't have to stick to canon if I never finished watching the damn thing in the first place.
> 
> I have most of this fic planned out (or at least bumping around in my brain), but I wanted that Sweet Sweet Validation and didn't have the restraint to write the whole thing before posting. This should be updating fairly regularly, but I am hella busy this semester, so please be patient with me.
> 
> Also I'm super not a psychologist pls take all of this with a grain of salt.
> 
> Around the middle of Chapter 2, the outside world rescues the kids. Don't think about it too much; I just wanted them to be happy (but struggle getting there).

Celeste was the first to leave when the doors opened.

She brushed past the hoards of confused police, half-crazed media, horrified families; she walked straight into the blinding sunlight and vanished.

There was a pretty significant gap in Mondo’s memory after that. One moment, the outside world and the inside were staring at each other in shock, neither willing to make the first move, and the next, Mondo was sitting in the cafeteria, wrapped in one of those shiny plastic sheets he only ever saw on TV. A middle-aged woman was talking to him in a soft voice. She might as well have been speaking German with how little Mondo was understanding.

He was exhausted but couldn’t close his eyes, couldn’t tear his gaze from the corner of a red tile, couldn’t even blink, the rest of the world fading from vision. A gasp startled him, and he looked around with wide eyes, desperate to find the source of the noise, needed to know if he was still in danger, if this was a test and there would soon be a sadistic bear filling the room with his awful cackles – but a millisecond later, his brain caught up and informed him that it was himself that had gasped. He had forgotten to breathe for a moment and needed air, hence the sudden noise. Mondo turned his gaze to his hands, shame creeping up the back of his neck.

The woman didn’t seem fazed by his erratic behavior. Instead, she merely handed him a bottle of water and gave him a sad smile. He took it but didn’t bother drinking. His limbs wouldn’t work even if he wanted them to. 

Suddenly, he became hyper-aware of every inch of his body. The chair was hard beneath him, feet hot in his socks, fingers twitching around the water bottle, teeth very slightly chattering, people were talking, too many people were here, they were going to get hurt, they needed to leave before Monokuma found out, the noise was becoming unbearable, he needed to escape, but he was forgetting something, he had to keep a promise but couldn’t remember to what, but they had to go, just had to remember _who_ he needed to find –

“Taka.”

The woman cocked her head and furrowed her brow.

“What was that, love?” she asked. Her voice was annoyingly compassionate. She didn’t know him; why did she bother pretending to care about him? He didn’t need her.

“Taka,” was all Mondo said before he pushed himself up and walked away.

The woman didn’t try to stop him.

It didn’t take Mondo long to find his target. Taka was curled up in a ball, neatly tucked into the corner of the room. A man was copying Taka’s position, exasperatedly trying to get him to talk or at least sit in a proper chair. Mondo shooed the man away with a dirty look and took his rightful place next to Taka.

He left a distinct gap between them. Neither spoke or even moved. One by one, the adults and eventually the students started filing out of the cafeteria. Taka made no move to join them, so Mondo stayed put. 

After an indeterminable amount of time (20 seconds? Half an hour?), Mondo placed a hand palm-up on the ground between them. Almost immediately, Taka accepted the offer and squeezed his hand desperately, fingernails surely leaving moon-shaped indents into Mondo’s skin.

They sat there in silence, Mondo stroking Taka’s hand with his thumb.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my journalism degree's rlly coming in clutch for frantically googling character wikis and accidentally spoiling an entire franchise for myself

It took some doing, but Mondo eventually coaxed Taka out of the corner. He was still squeezing Mondo’s hand like his life depended on it, though it was progress nonetheless.

They wandered aimlessly throughout the halls; except for a few passersby, the school was empty and quiet. Taka even stopped trembling so hard, and his grip on Mondo loosened ever so slightly. Mondo rambled on and on to fill the silence. Mondo himself wasn’t quite sure what he was talking about, but judging from Taka’s vacant expression, he wasn’t the only one not paying attention.

“Kiyotaka?”

Mondo whipped around, ready to throw hands with whoever broke their reverie, but one look at the offender froze him in place. Middle-aged, wearing an ill-fitting police uniform, pale, gaunt, heavy dark circles. Unmistakable eyebrows.

“Kiyotaka,” the man said again, “is that really you?”

Taka whimpered and hid behind Mondo.

“Kiyotaka, son, it’s alright,” the man rasped, holding out a hand like he was trying to calm a wild animal. “I’m here to take you home.”

He started to walk forward, but Mondo stopped him with a hand to his shoulder. The man looked like he was going to argue, a peculiar hint of anger gracing his expression, though that left as quickly as it came at Taka’s choked sob.

“How much did they tell you?” Mondo asked quietly.

The man was obviously confused. It was hard for Mondo to concentrate; Taka was gripping the back of his jacket with surprising strength and started shaking again.

“Let’s go somewhere quiet so I can explain,” Mondo said.

The man hesitantly nodded.

–––

The man – Ishimaru Takaaki; Mondo’s assumption was correct – kept silent save for a few clarifying questions as Mondo divulged the events of the past few weeks. Takaaki sat on the edge of Mondo’s bed, gently caressing Taka’s head as he lay staring unblinkingly at the wall. It wasn’t easy convincing Taka to move after his breakdown in the hallway, but the promise of a nap in Mondo’s room seemed too good for even his rattled brain to ignore.

Mondo, for his part, surprised himself with how well he was able to keep it together, though he did feel like he was either going to puke or faint at any given moment.

“I think he’s scared of leaving,” Mondo said. “We’re not sure if this is real or not. And I’m gonna guess that you were the one on his DVD, so that’s probably why he’s having a harder time processing this shit.”

Takaaki nodded solemnly. 

“They told me that he might react this way,” he mumbled. “Told me to be patient before seeing him.”

Taka twitched, and Takaaki rubbed his neck soothingly.

“But I couldn’t wait. He’s my son; I couldn’t just ‘be patient.’”

He turned his eyes back to Mondo.

“Thank _you_ for being patient with _me_.”

Mondo didn’t know how to respond, so he just gave Takaaki a shrug and a weak smile.

“Mondo, may I speak to you outside?” Takaaki asked after a pause.

Though he tensed up, Mondo nodded jerkily and made his way out the door. He caught a glimpse of Takaaki pressing a kiss to Taka’s forehead but averted his eyes, feeling like he saw something he wasn’t allowed to see. Takaaki followed him soon enough.

When the door shut behind them, Takaaki let out a shaky breath. He quickly composed himself and smiled at Mondo.

“Thank you for looking out for my son,” he said. “Looks like he really trusts you.”

His voice broke, and his eyes filled with tears.

“It’s nice to see that Taka has such a good friend.”

With that, the police officer burst into tears and grabbed Mondo in a tight, desperate embrace. It took Mondo a few seconds, but he eventually returned the hug, awkwardly patting Takaaki on the back as he wailed into Mondo’s shoulder.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> an adult: is genuinely concerned for Mondo's wellbeing
> 
> Mondo: surprised pikachu meme

“Do you have someone waiting for you?”

The question was not unkind; Takaaki was curious, empathy evident in his body language and tone of voice.

It irritated Mondo. Takaaki must have seen his Crazy Diamonds jacket, and even if he hadn’t, everything about Mondo should’ve tipped him off to the kind of person his son was hanging around.

Despite Mondo’s brain yelling at him to be rude to an authority figure, he swallowed his pride and decided that maybe it wasn’t a good idea to piss off his boyfriend’s (?) dad.

“Not really,” Mondo grunted. “Don’t have a family, and I ain’t certain that I wanna see my old friends right now.”

“If you’d like a place to stay, I’m sure that Kiyotaka would appreciate the company.”

Every fiber of Mondo’s being told him to refuse the offer outright. He didn’t need handouts, especially not from a fuckin’ cop. Who did this guy think he was, anyway? Did he think that Mondo was weak and helpless? Mondo had always fended for himself; he could sure as hell do so now.

…Though, he couldn’t exactly break the promise he made to Taka.

“Take some time to think about it, Mondo,” Takaaki said softly, like he could sense his internal struggle. “Why don’t you go get some sleep? I’m sure you’ve had a hell of a day.”

What did Takaaki take him for, a toddler? But Mondo couldn’t deny the bone-deep exhaustion permeating his whole being. He simply nodded, pushed himself off the ground, and lumbered back into his room without another word.

Taka hadn’t moved an inch, nor did he acknowledge Mondo’s entrance. Though, as Mondo all but collapsed on the bed, Taka squirmed closer to him. Mondo took that as permission, so he slowly reached out and gripped Taka’s shoulder.

In a flash, Mondo was wrapped in Taka’s arms and pulled on top of him. Taka was shaking, breath erratic, and he was holding Mondo so tight as if he was trying to get under his skin. Mondo pressed gentle kisses to Taka’s forehead, cheeks, shoulder, anything he could reach. Taka responded by hitching his legs around Mondo, pulling him even closer –

“Whoa, hey, let’s take a sec to slow down,” Mondo said.

He put a bit of distance between himself and Taka and took a good look at him. Taka’s eyes were wide but unseeing, face pale, palms clammy. Mondo sighed and rolled off of him, shushing Taka’s confused and hurt noises.

“Not sure either of us are in our right minds,” Mondo mumbled. He stroked Taka’s cheek for good measure. “Don’t wanna take advantage of you, y’know?”

For the first time that day, Taka’s mind appeared to have cleared enough to grasp the situation. He nodded solemnly and relaxed back into the bed. They lay in silence, and for one glorious moment, there was peace.

“M’sorry.”

Mondo was so confused by the words that he didn’t immediately realize that they were uttered by Taka. When he did, Mondo was even more puzzled.

“About the kissing thing?” Mondo asked. “I ain’t upset or anything. Just wanna make sure you’re okay is all.”

“Sorry.”

Taka looked distressed and started curling in on himself.

“Hey hey hey,” Mondo cooed. He sat up and gathered Taka in his arms, gently laying his head in his lap, exactly where he belonged.

“I’m – I’m sorry.” Taka’s voice was getting more unsteady by the second.

“You don’t gotta apologize, Taka.”

“Sorry –”

“Taka.”

“I’m s- _ sorry _ –”

Mondo nearly snapped, about ready to tell Taka to shut it and go to sleep, but something told him to try a different approach.

“What’re you sorry for?”

Taka shook his head and buried himself closer to Mondo, only a muffled “sorry” escaping him. 

“M’not mad at you, Taka.”

Mondo waited for his answering, compulsive apology before continuing.

“Remember what I promised you?”

A miserable whine, a shaky breath, and Taka nodded hesitantly.

“I’m gonna keep you safe.”

He was so close. Taka was teetering on the precipice; he needed only to trust that Mondo would catch him when he fell.

“I’m gonna keep the both of us safe, ‘til the end of time.”

Mondo knew he struck gold when he felt the first hot, wet tears splash onto his hand. Within seconds, Taka was weeping in earnest. Mondo, who was getting a lot of practice at handling crying men, let Taka get it out without comment. 

Taka eventually wore himself into exhaustion and all but passed out, tangled in Mondo’s embrace. Mondo loosened his shoulders finally, and the last thought he had before drifting off was that he was going to destroy each and every security camera he could find when he woke.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy valentine's day; here's some angst
> 
> hopefully the chapters will be a bit longer after this one! it took me forever, but they're finally out of the school. time to focus in on the nonlinear process of grief and the inherent awkwardness of teenage romance. thanks for all the love on this so far!!! still... haven't watched past chapter 2 lmao

Mondo, against his will, was becoming increasingly grateful for Takaaki’s presence. 

His brilliant idea of painstakingly smashing all the security cameras did not go over well with Taka when they woke up from their hours-long nap. More specifically, Taka damn near had a nervous breakdown when Mondo clambered on top of his chair to rip the camera from the ceiling with his bare hands. And despite Mondo’s insistence that he wasn’t breaking any school rules since, y’know, the outside world had come to their aid, Taka was not to be swayed. 

It took all of three minutes of trying and failing to calm Taka down before he sought out Takaaki’s help.

The grizzled officer hadn’t wandered far, and in no time, Mondo was awkwardly standing in the corner again as Takaaki pacified his son as only a father could. Infuriatingly, Takaaki stopped him as he tried to give them some space.

“I think he wants you close by,” Takaaki mumbled with an apologetic smile.

To answer, Taka frantically nodded while his face was still smushed against his father.

So Mondo stayed put, feeling more out-of-place than he ever had in his life. Though, he couldn’t deny that his heart skipped a beat when Taka blindly reached out a hand, seeking one of his own to grasp.

–––

Their hands were still clasped together as Takaaki led them back to the main hall. The sun was much lower in the sky than it had been when the doors opened, but the appealing warm tones of sunset made even Mondo’s eyes briefly tear up. If the hardest gang leader in all of Japan could appreciate the beauty of nature, then who couldn’t?

Taka, apparently, if his reaction was anything to go by. 

He planted his feet in the room’s entrance and would not budge, only shaking his head when Mondo and Takaaki tried to reason with him.

“We can’t stay here, Kiyotaka,” Takaaki pleaded. “The sooner you leave this awful place, the sooner you can start healing.”

Mondo nearly scoffed at the statement – sounded like some therapist bullshit, in his humble opinion – but he kept his mouth shut.

Taka whined and used all his strength attempting to drag Mondo further into the school; Mondo stood his ground, and Takaaki sighed. Mondo stole a quick look at him. He looked exhausted, more than a little sick, and Mondo could tell that he was having a hard time seeing his son like this.

“C’mere, Taka,” Mondo grunted, pulling him into an all-encompassing hug. “What’d I tell ya?”

“That you’d k-keep me safe,” Taka said against his chest. 

Mondo tried very hard to forget that his boyfriend’s – cop! – dad was mere inches away from where they stood. Oh well, it’s not like law enforcement was a fan of him on a good day.

He let Taka break the hug first and then shrugged off his jacket. For the second time in their budding relationship (though under much different circumstances), Taka was wrapped in the garb of the Crazy Diamonds. Mondo was getting inappropriately flustered by the sight, so he cleared his throat and took a step back.

“Let’s get the hell outta here, eh?”

Taka nodded, and Takaaki gave him an appreciative look.

The scene outside the school was quiet and empty. Mondo figured that Takaaki pulled some strings to give them a bit of privacy.

As they shuffled into the waiting car, Mondo became uncharacteristically pensive. The few times he let himself fantasize about being rescued from that hellhole, Mondo expected more drama, more fanfare, more… anything. But as he and Taka sat down on the upholstery and Takaaki got behind the wheel, there was nothing. It felt far too normal to be real.

But it was. The gentle white noise of the engine was nearly enough to lull Mondo to sleep, and the wind pouring in from the cracked windows felt like heaven. The city, cloaked in the cool light of dusk, whizzed by the silent trio.

Taka leaned on his shoulder. Mondo pressed a kiss to his forehead, and for the first time in God knows how long, Mondo let himself truly relax.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I'm back.
> 
> I've had a Hell Of A Month, but mostly, I just blinked and suddenly it was March. Sorry about a radio silence, folks! The sun has finally decided to show her face again, so I'm hoping that my motivation will go way up in the coming weeks.
> 
> I actually had about half of this chapter written within a week of the last one; the stress of school and other factors made me get stuck on just a few transitions, but once I decided to sit down and finally update the damn thing, the words just kept coming. 
> 
> Thank you for your patience and for sticking with this! I haven't abandoned it, I promise. Y'all take care!

Mondo was getting a little disconcerted with how many gaps there were in his memory.

He remembered the car ride and eventually stopping, but somewhere between exiting the car and Takaaki announcing dinner, Mondo must’ve blacked out. He jolted out of his dozing – Taka was leaning heavily against him, both boys slumped deep into the worn sofa. Dinner was uneventful; Mondo couldn’t so much as remember what he ate, let alone taste it. The kitchen was silent save for the sound of silverware against plates. Mondo’s eyes were doing that annoying thing where they couldn’t focus on anything, but he was too tired to remedy that.

Taka eventually got up and mumbled something about a shower. Mondo stayed put, and so did Takaaki, both letting Taka have some space. Mondo stared at the glass of water in his hand, thumbing absentmindedly at a drop of condensation making its way down the side as the thump of Taka’s footsteps got quieter and quieter. Takaaki stood up then, and Mondo gulped down the ice-cold liquid in his grasp.

“Taka’s bed is more than big enough for the two of you.”

Mondo nearly choked on his drink.

The comment from Takaaki was so out of left-field, especially considering how calm he looked as he gathered the dishes from the table.

“Or, you could take my bed for the night,” he continued, dumping the dishes in the sink and turning on the water. “I don’t mind sleeping on the couch. Sorry that we don’t have a guest room, though.”

He wasn’t even looking at Mondo, the bastard. For about the sixth time that day, Mondo wanted desperately to pick a fight, but his existential exhaustion reduced his anger to mere suspicion.

“Ya makin’ fun of me?” Mondo grumbled.

Takaaki did turn around then.

“Now why would I do that?” he asked. 

Mondo wasn’t the best at reading people on a good day, but even he could tell that Takaaki was serious. 

“Sorry,” Mondo said after an awkward pause. “Not used to people bein’ nice, I guess.”

“I’m very sorry to hear that, Mondo.”

He almost winced at how sincere Takaaki was. To make up for the uncomfortable atmosphere, Mondo pushed himself from the table, grabbed a towel, and joined Takaaki at the sink.

The two worked in silence for a few minutes before Mondo regained some of his courage.

“Ain’t you supposed to threaten me or somethin’? ‘Cause me and Taka – y’know…” he trailed off.

Takaaki shrugged.

“I figured you didn’t need any more stress today. Besides,” he casually pointed a soapy spoon in Mondo’s direction, “I’m more than capable of protecting my son if need be.”

They both laughed, but Mondo got the feeling that Takaaki was only half joking.

“I can take care of the rest,” Takaaki said, gesturing to the few dishes left in the sink. “Do me a favor and check on Kiyotaka for me, would you?”

Mondo nodded, and, after a moment, added, “Thanks, by the way. For, y’know, lettin’ me stay here.”

“You’re always welcome here, Mondo,” Takaaki said with a soft smile. 

Mondo promptly ran away from that startling display of genuine emotion, merely grunting in affirmation when Takaaki informed him that Taka’s room was the second door on the left.

Taka’s room was just about what Mondo expected: functional, spartan – a little impersonal, all things considered. The previous door in the hallway was shut, the muffled sound of running water escaping the thin walls. Mondo sat on the edge of the bed, and sure enough, it was big enough for two. He felt a blush come on, but he pushed it aside and did his very best to shut his brain up for a while.

Sure, Mondo’s sense of time had truly gone to shit the past few hours, but even he felt that Taka’s shower was going on a little too long for comfort. After quite a bit of deliberation, Mondo lumbered his way back to the bathroom and pressed his ear to the door. The water was still running. Another moment of hesitation, then Mondo knocked.

No response.

He knocked again and softly called out to Taka. Nothing.

_ Shit. Fuck. Dammit. _

Mondo cracked open the door and stuck his face inside. The room was filled with steam; he could hardly see the shower through the fog.

“Taka?” he said, mentally cursing at how desperate he sounded. “You okay?”

A quiet whine from the shower finally answered him.

Mondo pressed his forehead to the door jamb, counted to ten, and pulled out the big guns.

“Can I come in?”

An answering whine, and Mondo slid into the room, quickly shutting the door behind him. The warm, heavy air briefly reminded him of a sauna.

Ah.

Mondo worked his way further into the bathroom until he was standing right next to the shower.

“C’mon, dude, you won last time,” Mondo tried to joke, but it sounded flat even to his own ears. “No need to give yourself another heat stroke.”

No answer. Mondo cleared his throat and went a different route.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m still beat even after that nap,” he said. “It’d be nice to have a cuddle buddy or somethin’, y’know?”

A sigh. That was something, at least. Mondo looked around and grabbed a towel, comfortably warm from the steam.

“Gotta towel with your name on it,” he continued. “Lemme give you the Owada Special before we head off to sleep.”

Owada Special? What the hell was he thinking? But that idiotic ribbing seemed to do the trick because Taka suddenly pulled the shower curtain aside. Mondo respectfully diverted his gaze as Taka stepped toward him.

Once snuggly cocooned in the towel, Taka pressed his head to Mondo’s shoulder and groaned. He sounded more frustrated than anything else, to Mondo’s surprise. Before he could ask, Taka provided him an answer for that.

“M’not a baby,” Taka mumbled. “Should be able to take care of myself.”

Mondo wrapped his arms around him and swayed them side-to-side.

“I think you get a pass for a bit,” he answered. “Think we all do.”

Taka groaned again but didn’t argue. He merely nuzzled closer to Mondo, and the two simply existed together in that small space until well after the steam had dissipated.


End file.
